Two days later, Fiona was still at Lucas's side. She woke slowly, feeling the cramp in her neck from sleeping in a chair once again. As she blinked awake, she sensed something was wrong. She tried to focus enough to figure out what it was, and suddenly it hit her.

Lucas's hand was hot and clammy.

She bolted upright, ignoring the cramping in her neck, and took in his face. He was flushed and sweating. The pale look from the previous few days was gone, and his cheeks were now redder than she had ever seen them. He groaned as his head moved slightly from side to side, but his eyes didn't open.

Fiona pressed a trembling hand to his forehead. He was burning up.

She looked wildly around the infirmary, wondering where Carson had gone. Leaping up, she flung open the door and saw him walking toward the infirmary, coffee in hand. "Carson!" she called. "Come quick!"

Carson started jogging toward her. "What is it?" he asked, his eyes going to the bed. They widened as he took in Lucas's condition, and he immediately went to the basin near the bed, wetting a cloth with the cool water. "Fiona, I need you to go to the saloon and get two buckets of ice from Gustav," he said, his voice calm but urgent. "Come back as fast as you can."

Fiona nodded and ran for the saloon. Gustav immediately fulfilled her request and helped her carry the two buckets back to the infirmary. Once there, Carson wrapped the ice in cloths and started to place them around Lucas. He glanced at Fiona. "You might want to turn around for a moment. I have to put some of these under his shirt."

Face reddening, Fiona nodded and turned to face the wall. Once Carson gave her the okay, she turned back around and helped him place more ice packs around Lucas. He gave her the final one to place on his head. His moaning tore her heart, and she fought tears. His physical pain was her emotional pain. She looked up at Carson, and saw that his mouth was in a grim line. Her heart dropped. "What is it, Carson?"

He sighed. "When I was placing the ice packs under his shirt, I noticed that his wounds are red and inflamed." His eyes met hers. "I'm afraid an infection has set in. That's why he has the fever."

Fear gripped Fiona's heart. "What does that mean, Carson?" she asked, her voice low.

Carson didn't answer for a minute. When he did, he let out another sigh. "It means the next couple of days are going to be critical ones for Lucas. I'll be honest, Fiona; a lot of times it isn't the gunshot wound itself that kills a person. It's the infection that sets in afterwards."

Fiona had thought she'd cried all the tears possible, but at Carson's words she broke into sobs, the tears flowing down her cheeks in rapid succession. Her sobs must have awakened Carson's protective side, because he wrapped her in a hug much like her older brother did when he was trying to comfort her. She clung to him, letting the tears fall, until they were finally spent. She pulled back, sniffing. Carson handed her a handkerchief. She smiled her thanks and delicately wiped her eyes and blew her nose. She looked back at Lucas, who was no longer groaning but was still flushed. "How long will he be like this?" she asked, though her heart feared the answer.

"I don't know, Fiona," Carson said gently. "I wish I did, but it's different for each person." He looked at Lucas. "We just have to wait and pray."

The next two days were much the same. Lucas was feverish and groaned in pain. Fiona and Carson constantly changed out his ice packs and applied cold cloths to his forehead. Carson cleaned his wounds often, applying medication and salves to clear the infection. Each groan from Lucas smote Fiona's heart, and she prayed harder than she ever had before that Lucas would pull through, that he would come back to her.

She was more emotionally and physically exhausted than she could remember being before in her life. Carson urged her to go home and rest, but she refused to leave Lucas. Once he realized how serious she was, he brought in a small cot for her to sleep on at night, saying she couldn't keep sleeping in the chair. She accepted it gratefully.

Another day passed in the same fashion. Fiona could barely keep her eyes open, and she drifted into a fitful sleep. Several hours later, she awoke. She was quiet for a moment, sensing something was different. She sat up on her cot and looked over at Lucas.

He wasn't groaning. His face had lost the sheen from perspiration, and his coloring looked normal again. Hope made its way into Fiona's heart, and she looked over at Carson. "Carson?"

He smiled. "His fever has finally broken, and his wounds look clean once again." He put a hand on her shoulder, a grin breaking free. "The infection has passed."

Relief unlike anything she had ever known swept over Fiona, and she had to cling to the side of her cot to keep from falling over. "That's good, right?" she said, looking up at Carson with hopeful eyes.

He nodded. "This is a good sign, to be sure. But…"

Fiona raised a brow as Carson trailed off. "But what?"

Sighing, Carson shook his head. "I'd feel a lot better about his chances if he would wake up. He's been in a coma for a week now. He needs to wake up."

Fiona took a deep breath. Lucas was out of the woods with his infection. Now she turned her prayers to asking for him to wake up. More than anything, she wanted to see his soulful brown eyes looking into hers, to hear his voice once again, to know he would be okay.

She wanted to tell him that she loved him.

Elizabeth was worried about Nathan. He had been quieter than usual the entire week. She knew his mind was on Lucas and whether or not he would recover. When Lucas had been in the throes of his fever, Nathan had stopped by the infirmary each day, asking Carson how he could help. Usually it involved grabbing more ice from Gustav at the saloon. Some evenings he just sat with Lucas, keeping Fiona company and trying not to think the worst.

From their spot on the settee, Elizabeth looked up at Nathan. His arm was around her, holding her close, but his eyes were a thousand miles away. She shook her head, knowing where his mind was. Without a word, she took his face in her hands and kissed him soundly, hoping to snap him out of his thoughts.

It worked. By the time she pulled back, Nathan's eyes were clear again, though his breathing was more rapid. "What was that for?" he asked, his eyes taking on a bit of a twinkle.

Elizabeth smiled at him. "Because I love you," she said. "And because I hate seeing you so upset. You need to stop blaming yourself, you know."

He sighed, nodding. "I know. And I'm trying to let it go. I think it's just so hard not knowing what the outcome will be. This waiting is almost worse than the outcome itself."

"I know it is," Elizabeth said gently. "And I can understand that. But you, my dear Nathan, need to let go and let God handle this. You're not in control. He is."

A smile finally broke out over Nathan's face. "How do you do that?" he asked.

Elizabeth raised a brow. "How do I do what?"

"Know exactly what to say in the moment," Nathan said, chuckling. "It's a gift, Elizabeth. A beautiful gift."

She gave him a sweet smile. "Does that mean you'll stop blaming yourself now?" she asked.

"I'll try," Nathan said, pressing a kiss to her temple. "You, Gabe, Bill, and Lee keep telling me that I need to stop. And I am trying, Elizabeth. It's just hard to do so when I know I should be the one lying in that infirmary bed."

"No, don't even think that," Elizabeth said firmly. "Never think that, Nathan. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you." She snuggled against him, taking in his warmth and presence. "What happened to Lucas is very sad, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't very worried about him. But I have a feeling he's going to be okay. He's going to wake up soon."

"I hope you're right," Nathan said. "That would be wonderful." He smiled wryly. "And then I can thank him for saving my life."

"So can I," Elizabeth said, smiling. She shook her head. "I knew he had it in him to be heroic. He just needed the opportunity to be so."

Nathan nodded. "I must admit I never expected him to be the kind of man who would push someone out of the way of a bullet, much less me." He smiled in a self-deprecating manner. "I've never been this glad to be so wrong about someone. Lucas truly is a good, courageous man."

"And someone you could be good friends with?" Elizabeth asked, smiling up at him.

Nathan looked down, then smiled as well. "Yes, Elizabeth, I do think you're right. Lucas and I might actually be able to be friends after all." His smile faded. "But first he needs to wake up."

"He will," Elizabeth said confidently. "I don't know how I know, but I know he's going to be alright."

Nathan studied her, then let out a breath, nodding slowly. "I hope you're right, sweetheart."

Lucas felt as though his eyes weighed a hundred pounds each. He tried to open them several times before they finally cooperated. As his eyes opened, the room seemed exceedingly bright, and he squinted in reaction. Next he became aware of a throbbing pain on the left side of his abdomen, and he groaned, wishing for the oblivion of sleep once again.

He slowly became aware that someone was holding his hand, and he rolled his head slowly to the side. Fiona had her hand in his, and her head was laying next to their joined hands as she sat in a chair. He couldn't help smiling, wondering what she was doing at his bedside but happy to see her.

Suddenly, he frowned. He wasn't at home. Looking around, he recognized the infirmary. What was he doing here?

Flashes of memory started to come to him. Working with Nathan to catch the thieves. Thinking they had caught all of them. Seeing a fourth one appear out of nowhere and point a gun directly at Nathan. Pushing Nathan out of the way, knowing he couldn't let Elizabeth lose another man she loved. Searing pain. Then everything went black.

He'd been shot. That would explain the throbbing pain in his shoulder and abdomen. It would also explain why he was here in the infirmary.

How long had he been here?

He tried to squeeze Fiona's hand, but it ended up being a small press. Clearly he was weaker than he thought. But Fiona must have felt it. She lifted her head, her dark eyes bleary from sleep, her hair a mess.

She was beautiful.

He watched as her eyes registered the fact that he was looking at her, and she inhaled sharply. "You're awake!"

How long had he been asleep? Before he could ask, Fiona leaned over and started raining kisses all over his face. He could feel her teardrops falling on his cheeks, but he didn't mind. Fiona's lips found his, kissing him with a passion tempered with gentleness. She pulled away but didn't go far, framing his face in her hands and gazing into his eyes. "I thought I'd lost you," she said softly, tears still sparkling on her cheeks.

Lucas reached up with his uninjured arm and cupped her cheek, wiping her tears away with his thumb. "You won't lose me," he said gently. "I have no intention of leaving you."

"Good," she said with a half-laugh, half-sob. "Because it was touch and go there for a while."

Lucas's brow wrinkled. "How long have I been out?" he asked.

"Eight days," Fiona answered. "A very, very long eight days." She breathed in deeply, gripping his hand in hers. A tentative, shy look filled her eyes, a look Lucas had never seen on her before. He got the sense she was about to say something important. "Lucas, while you were sleeping I did a lot of thinking, and I realized…"

Her words were cut off as Carson opened the door and walked into the infirmary. Lucas found himself wondering why Carson had to choose that exact moment to walk in and interrupt Fiona. Her grip on his hand tightened slightly, and she let out a nearly imperceptible sigh.

The excitement on Carson's face at seeing Lucas awake almost made up for the fact that he had just interrupted what Lucas sensed was a big moment. He walked over to the bed, beaming. "You're awake! How are you feeling?"

"My shoulder and stomach hurt," Lucas said. "And I'm tired. But Fiona just told me I've been sleeping for eight days."

Carson nodded. "We nearly lost you a few times, Lucas. I'm so glad you've pulled through. Do you remember what happened?"

Lucas nodded, wincing slightly as he remembered the pain of the bullets entering his body. "Yes."

Carson grinned. "You know this makes you a full blown hero, right?"

Lucas laughed, then grimaced. "Oww!"

"Oh, sorry about that," Carson said, an apologetic look on his face. "You're not going to want to laugh or make any sudden movements for a while. That wound is going to take another week at least to heal enough for you to be up and about."

"What?" Lucas asked, staring aghast at Carson. "And what exactly am I supposed to do for the next week?"

"Bedrest," Carson said, leveling a stern look at him. "No arguing. You've had quite the trauma, Lucas, and you need to heal."

"I'll make sure he's taken care of," Fiona put in, looking between them.

Carson smiled. "I'm sure you will." He looked back at Lucas. "Fiona hasn't left your side from the moment she found out you were injured."

Lucas raised a brow, looking at Fiona. A slow smile spread over his face as he took in her suddenly pink cheeks. "Is that so?" His smile became a grin as she floundered for words. Squeezing her hand gently, he said teasingly, "I didn't realize you cared so much."

She looked back at him, her eyes serious. "I do."

He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him in the best way possible, and their gaze lengthened on until Carson cleared his throat. "I'm going to go check on some patients on the outskirts of town," he said. "I'm thinking you two have some things to talk about." He quietly walked out, shutting the door behind him.

Lucas turned his head back toward Fiona, his eyes searching hers. "Were you really here the whole time?" he asked softly.

She simply nodded. "Carson even brought in a cot for me so I could sleep here," she admitted. "I couldn't bear to leave you."

Rare tears stung Lucas's eyes. His voice became raspy as he looked at the incredible woman in front of him. "No one's ever cared for me that much before," he whispered.

Fiona pressed her lips to his hand. "Never doubt that I care for you," she said, her voice hitching with emotion. "In fact, I...I…" Her mouth continued to work, but the words wouldn't come. Lucas watched her, waiting patiently for her to continue. Finally, she pushed past the invisible barrier holding her back. "I realized something while you were asleep. The fear I felt thinking I could lose you, the emotional agony I felt every time you groaned in pain, the desperate desire for you to wake up; it all showed me my true feelings for you." She placed a hand on his cheek and gave him a tremulous smile. "I realized that I'm in love with you."

Emotions swirled inside of Lucas that he had never felt before, and in a rush he realized what a powerful emotion love truly was. He knew in that instance he had never been in love until this moment with this woman. What they shared was real and true.

He had finally found his soulmate.

His eyes locked with hers, and he hoped she could see the depth of his feelings for her in his eyes. "I'm in love with you, too," he said, bringing her hand to his lips for a tender kiss. He tried to lift his head from the pillow, but found he wasn't able to without pain shooting through his shoulder. He sighed and leaned back against the pillow. "You have no idea how much I want to hold you right now," he said.

"Well, why not?" Fiona asked, tilting her head. She sat carefully on the bed, then lay next to him, her head on his uninjured shoulder, an arm carefully wrapped around him where there were no injuries.

Lucas raised his brows, loving the feel of her in his arms but knowing they were breaking all the rules of propriety. "What would Florence say if she walked in at this very moment?" he asked, trying not to laugh to avoid the pain that he knew would result.

"Who cares?" Fiona said, her voice slightly defiant. "We're not doing anything wrong. If anyone asks, we felt the need to hold each other, and you're unable to stand up. So we had to improvise and go with an unconventional method."

"Everything about this relationship has been unconventional," Lucas said, smiling as he kissed Fiona's hair. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Good," she said, her spunk evident in her tone. "Because neither would I."